ACP-SXM demands immediate govt clarification on BTP oversight following GEBE fuel clause increase notification

GREAT BAY--The Association for Consumer Protection St. Maarten (ACP-SXM) is demanding immediate clarification from the Government of St. Maarten on whether the Bureau Telecommunication and Post (BTP) reviewed or verified NV GEBE’s decision to increase the electricity fuel clause to XCG 0.49, effective July 10, 2026.

ACP-SXM said the increase will affect households on invoices distributed beginning Monday, July 13, but no supporting data, methodology or independent verification was included in NV GEBE’s public announcement. President of the association Peggy-Ann Richardson hosted a live Facebook presentation on Friday evening after GEBE's announcement to update the public on the situation and to make transparent the associations call to government for clarification.

The consumer organization said the issue goes directly to the purpose of Ministerial Decree Nr. 806/2026, which formally designated BTP as supervisor of NV GEBE with authority over technical, operational and financial oversight.

The decree was jointly signed on May 22, 2026, by the Ministers of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication and Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure.

ACP-SXM pointed to the decree’s own justification, which states that “recent adjustments to tariff components, specifically the fuel clause, underscore the need for verified data, transparent tariff methodologies and independent supervisory oversight.”

According to the association, the Government specifically identified the fuel clause as one of the reasons stronger oversight was required. Less than two months later, GEBE has increased that same tariff component without publicly explaining whether BTP reviewed the calculation or independently verified the information supporting the adjustment.

“No data was published. No methodology was disclosed. No independent verification was cited. This is not a technicality. It is a direct test of whether Ministerial Decree Nr. 806/2026 means anything at all,” ACP-SXM stated.

The association is now demanding immediate public confirmation from the Ministers of VROMI and TEATT, as signatories to the decree, on whether BTP reviewed or verified the fuel clause calculation before the increase to XCG 0.49 was announced.

ACP-SXM is also calling for the full disclosure of the data, methodology and fuel cost inputs used by NV GEBE to justify the increase. The association said such disclosure should be consistent with the transparency standards the Government itself cited when establishing the new oversight structure.

The organization further wants Government to clarify whether BTP’s supervisory mandate requires prior approval of fuel clause adjustments or whether the bureau is limited to monitoring such changes after they take effect.

ACP-SXM has requested a written explanation within seven days outlining how the increase is consistent with Government’s stated commitment to “reliable and transparent oversight of the electricity sector” and “the protection of consumers.”

The association said the fuel clause increase cannot be viewed in isolation from the wider concerns currently surrounding NV GEBE.

The utility’s Temporary Collection Policy is expected to see disconnections resume during the week of July 20. ACP-SXM said this is occurring after GEBE’s legal counsel rejected the association’s nine collective consumer demands and declined to negotiate them.

ACP-SXM also referenced what it described as 15 years without mandatory tariff regulation, a documented US $6.9 million consumer overcharge identified in the RAC/BTP Tariff Evaluation covering 2022 to 2024 and a six-year vacancy in GEBE’s executive leadership.

“This is a pattern, not an accident. And now the Government has, on paper, the exact oversight mechanism this moment calls for, while the public has yet to see it used,” ACP-SXM stated.

The association stressed that the Government, as sole shareholder of NV GEBE, cannot distance itself from developments involving the utility.

“Ownership carries responsibility. ACP-SXM demands the Government act on that responsibility now, not after the July 13 invoices land, not after the July 20 disconnections resume. Today,” the organization stated.

ACP-SXM said it reserves the right to pursue all legal avenues available, including formal proceedings, if it is determined that the fuel clause increase bypassed the oversight mechanism established by Government.

“The people of St. Maarten are entitled to know whether the safeguard the Government built actually functioned, or whether it was ignored the first time it mattered,” ACP-SXM concluded.

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